


as the waves miss the shore

by roselikesrain



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Don't worry there's a happy ending, Gen, Mutual Pining, lowkey angsty, mentions of other nct members - Freeform, pure as can be
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-13
Updated: 2020-09-13
Packaged: 2021-03-06 21:54:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,834
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26435992
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/roselikesrain/pseuds/roselikesrain
Summary: in which mark realises that it's more than just the sun-kissed shores that he misses; it's the sun-kissed boy tooaka romance who? i only know platonic tension
Comments: 6
Kudos: 15





	as the waves miss the shore

**Author's Note:**

  * For [buttonsoo](https://archiveofourown.org/users/buttonsoo/gifts).



> dedicated to tayler who is the cutest bub and i love her art to the moon and back 
> 
> this is probably miles away from your imagined narrative, but i did my best hehe! enjoy~

  
It had been a long day, one filled with a litany of goodbyes and wishes of wellness from the resident staff of the facility. Yuta, the diving squad team leader had even brought him a cake, one with too much cream that was largely eaten by the man himself. Mark had even gone to the end of the pier to say his goodbyes to the fish and Pop the new baby dolphin he’d helped track. 

He now stood in the car park, arms laden down with the contents of his desk draws and workspace. Mark hadn’t even had the heart to throw away the stupid sticky-note doodles Ten had drawn him. Johnny helped him put his things in the back of the (already messy) boot of his Jeep with a ruffle of Mark’s hair that had felt patronising at first but now felt as natural as breathing. 

Johnny pulled out onto the ring-road that ran the perimeter of the island, the dust from the dirt track behind them nothing more than an orange cloud already starting to resettle over the stones. He turned to Mark who had settled in the passenger side, head tilted back to take in the dappled sunlight, “You joining us at the beach tonight?” 

Mark scratched his head, his fringe was getting long now and it hung low over his eyes; he’d have to stop by one of the barbershops in town after he packed, or maybe he’d ask one of the aunties to do it before he returned home. “Of course, how could I miss?” 

Johnny nodded, his classic Ray-Ban style sunglasses bouncing on his nose. “I’m picking everyone up in front of the dorms at 5, we’ll grab some Huli Huli chicken on the way down. Hopefully the waves will be good.” 

This made Mark laugh, it seemed wherever he lived, whether it was Toronto, his hometown; Seoul, the city of his high school years; or Honolulu, his short-term home, chicken was a constant. “I’ll be there.” 

✿

Mark was surprised when Donghyuck had dragged him off of his surfboard and out of the water after barely being at the beach for an hour and a half, murmuring something about climbing a mountain. “What about the others?” He had asked, trying to dust as much wet sand from his feet before donning his beat-up Converse. 

Donghyuck waved a hand distracted as he pulled a loose button-up shirt over his shoulders, not bothering to complete the job by actually fastening the shirt, “They won’t notice.” 

The climb to where Donghyuck was headed was not so difficult, the incline was gradual and the foliage was not overgrown, but in his wet bathers, Mark felt like a fish out of water. When they reached the outcrop of the cliff just 10 minutes later Mark’s cheeks had taken on a slightly pink tinge. But the view from the top was well worth the walk, the elevation of the lookout perfectly showcased the wide expanse of cerulean ocean, the group looking tiny as they mucked around in the shallows of the cove. 

Donghyuck planted himself cross-legged at the edge of the cliff face, patting the patch of earth beside him in an invitation for Mark to sit. “I made you something, a memento of this place.” 

Mark raised his eyebrows, swinging his legs over the ledge. Donghyuck was acting strange that evening and Mark couldn’t even attribute it to Johnny’s bad taste in beer. In the days and weeks that Mark had spent getting to know Donghyuck, he had always been the mood-maker of the group, the one to bring the energy and enthusiasm. But not tonight it seemed. 

Donghyuck tugged out a thin cord bracelet from his breast pocket, tugging Mark’s hand into his lap as he tied it around his wrist. “I made you one so you’d match the rest of us.” He said, voice delicate and gentle. 

When he was done, Mark pulled his hand away, anxious to remove the feeling of Donghyuck’s fingertips on the inside of his wrist. The bracelet was extremely similar to the one that Donghyuck wore around his ankle and the one Johnny had tied around his car keys. It was made from three cyan blue fishnet threads braided around bits of smooth white shell, yet it felt comfortable against his skin, it wasn’t rough or irritating. 

While Mark took turns marvelling at his new possession and the quickly setting sun, the two lapsed into a comfortable silence. Until Donghyuck spoke up: “Did you know that Hawaii drifts 4 inches closer to Japan every year?” 

Mark turned to look at the boy beside him, tearing his gaze away from the beautiful view in front of him was really not so hard when the alternative was Donghyuck. “Really?” 

The boy simply shrugged back, “Probably not. I read it on the back of a packet of gum once.” He flipped his still wet hair over to expose his open forehead in one fluid motion, his eyes fluttering shut to take in the last seconds of warm sunlight before it set. The golden chain hanging against his bare chest caught the last few amber drops of light before the sun dipped below the horizon, not to be seen again until it rose again the next morning. But by that time Mark would be gone.

“I think it’s a sad thought in a way,” Donghyuck continued, “that we’re all just drifting, even those that seem to be immovable. That no matter how much we want things to stay the same, they’ll end up drifting away anyway.” 

“Some things do come back, though, just like the tide, like the sun.” Mark wasn’t so bold as to assume that Donghyuck was thinking of him, so he swallowed down the ‘like me.’ “They’re not gone forever.” 

Donghyuck stood up and dusted the imaginary sand from his board shorts, “Well, they better hurry up and come back quick then.” He threw one last look over his shoulder before giving Mark one of his soft smiles that melted Mark’s insides. “See you around Mark Lee.” 

Mark let himself cry then. He’d been holding off until now, trying to stay stoic in front of his friends. His three-month stay had flown by quicker than he had wanted it to and he found that he was going to miss everything about this place. During his fugacious, barely-hundred-day-stay on the island, Mark had felt more at home than he ever thought possible. He wondered how long it would take the smell of sea salt to wear off his skin and clothes once he returned to Vancouver, and how much longer it would take for the name Lee Donghyuck to mean nothing to him. 

✿

The remaining three months of Mark’s studies did not go by as quickly. They were spent cramming for his final exams and catching up on his friends' stories and his mum’s cooking. The girls in his classes all commented on how much his new tan suited him and whether he’d introduce them to any of the cute boys from his Instagram posts, he greeted both topics with a nervous laugh. 

It was the bracelet on his wrist that kept him grounded during study season, the memories of his days at the Marine Life Center reminding him of what he was studying for. By the time his graduation ceremony came he’d almost forgotten how the sun felt on his skin, Autumn now in full swing. He’d received a collection of congratulatory late-night texts from his ex-roommates Renjun and Jeno, but to his disappointment, nothing from Donghyuck. 

When Mark was awarded his certificate, it was added to the array of photos and accolades collecting on his parents’ walls. The photo taken with his team at the Marine Life Center on his last day had also made its way up there. He had a copy of it framed on his desk too, a set of polaroids clustered around of those that missed out on the photo: a couple of ugly selfies with Jeno and Renjun, and a singular one of Donghyuck after he had finished his Friday night shift at the resort luau, wilting frangipani tucked behind his ear and a dreamy smile upon his face as he lounged in a hammock. 

Mark had taken recently to keeping the latter tucked inside his wallet, it had slipped out once with a handful of change while paying for a McDonald’s order and he had quickly scrambled to pick it up before even contemplating the money. If his friends had noticed, they didn’t mention it. 

It was a few weeks after that occasion that he received the email. The word “accepted” seemed to glow brighter on his screen than the rest. Could this be it? Could he really return to the place he now only saw in fragments of his dreams? 

✿

Johnny picked him up from the airport in his Jeep that hadn’t looked like it had been washed or cleaned out since Mark last sat in it. There was sand in the seams of the seats and sauce sachets from different takeaway restaurants stuffed in the cupholders, but it was a comfort, it was familiar. 

Johnny had the roof up this time though, and there was water in the gutters. It had just turned to November and the island was edging into winter at a rapid pace, yet was still warm- a welcome change from Toronto. Mark wound down the window and stuck his head out, letting the damp dawn air buffer his hair. He’d missed the smell of the island, it sounded weird to say, but it was true. The year-round blossoms filled the air with that sweet, floral scent at the best of times, but it was only amplified by the seasonal rains. 

In the driver's seat, Johnny was freely chatting, waving his big hands around more than he should have been whilst driving on the still slick roads. Mark was only half-listening, there was something bitter-sweet about hearing the stories of the boys’ escapades while he’d been away. However, he managed to laugh at the appropriate times and insert ‘oh damnnnnn’s when he felt it necessary. Though, it hadn’t taken long before Johnny had picked up on Mark’s un-chatty vibes, blaming it on the jet-lag, and had put the radio on instead. 

At last, they pulled up at the apartment complex. The dorm room that Mark had previously shared with Renjun and Jeno had been filled by a boy named Chenle straight out of a private college in Shanghai, so Johnny had offered to let him bunk with him for a couple of days in his new rented studio apartment. (“The pull-out sofa bed isn’t _that_ broken.” Johnny had said.)

To Mark’s immense disappointment, the elevator in Johnny’s building was substantially less reliable than the one in the dorm building. The big ‘out of order’ sign was badly taped over the two metal doors on a wonky angle. Johnny ran a hand through his hair, “Sorry about that bro, it completely slipped my mind.” 

Mark sighed, his body protesting the incoming task. “No worries, we’ll just have to do it in a few trips. Remind me what floor you live on, again?” 

Johnny reluctantly informed him it was the fourth floor while bending down to pick up Mark’s suitcase. He tried to justify it saying that they could at least skip out on going to the gym that evening, (Mark had been planning to anyway.) They left the rest of the bags in the alcove beneath the staircase, relying on the unlikeliness of anyone else being awake at such an ungodly time in the morning, and began the trek to Johnny’s floor. 

The straps of Mark’s bags began cutting into his palms by the first flight of stairs and by the second his legs felt heavy; still asleep from the long-haul flight. When they reached the fourth there were beads of sweat on the back of his neck and his woollen jumper felt suffocating, to his envy, Johnny was not so affected. Hence why it puzzled Mark so much when he stopped still in the hallway. 

It took him a couple of steps to catch up, “You good, John?” 

Then he saw him, swaying on his feet in the half-light of the corridor and looking exhausted. But his eyes lit up when he saw Mark and while Mark couldn’t make out any sound, he saw his name ghost the boy’s lips. 

“Donghyuck?” The bags almost slipped out of Mark’s fingers in his disbelief. Here was the boy that hadn’t bothered to contact him once in the seven months they’d been apart, stood in front of him, still in his work clothes from the shift he had likely just finished hours earlier. “What are you doing here?” 

Mark couldn’t help notice the transitory flick of Donghyuck’s eyes towards Johnny and for a sinking moment, Mark thought he’d misread the situation. Of course, Donghyuck had come for Johnny, he probably didn’t even know Mark was coming back. But whatever message Donghyuck had been trying to send Johnny telepathically, it had been received. Johnny clapped him on the shoulder and whispered: “I’ll grab the rest of the bags.” with a solemn nod. 

Mark turned back to Donghyuck, eyes wide with anticipation- and a good dosage of trepidation if he was being frank. 

Donghyuck was the first to move, shuffling forwards so he stood in front of Mark. Then he punched him. 

It was only a slight hit to his bicep, nothing that would leave any lasting damage, but it came as an unwanted surprise. “You never responded to my messages.” 

Mark was speechless for a second, his befuddled brain working at twice its capacity to compensate for the absurdity of the situation. “What?” 

Donghyuck pouted like a spoilt child experiencing the word ‘no’ for the first time. “I sent you emails every week for almost the whole time you were away. You’re an asshole, Mark Lee.” 

“But I never received any emails! I can promise you Donghyuck, I never received any.” 

The pout of the boy in front of him deepened as if to say ‘I don’t believe you’ He put his hands on his hips and gathered himself up to give Mark an authoritative stare, “Show me your phone.” 

Mark didn’t dare roll his eyes and handed the phone over obediently after punching in his password. He watched as Donghyuck scanned through the contents of his emails with the intensity of someone hoping to expose all his dirty secrets. (Not that he would find any, the only thing that made their way to his emails these days were Subway promotional emails, Duolingo reminders and shamefully low bank statements. A weekly email chain from Donghyuck would have significantly raised the quality standard of his inbox.) 

Donghyuck looked up at him after a while, somewhat sheepishly. Mark felt a wave of smugness wash over him, but it admittedly didn’t feel as good as he thought it would. This wasn’t an argument he necessarily wanted to win. “You use Gmail?” 

“Yes?” 

“Oh.” Donghyuck nodded and handed the phone back to Mark, “I see.” 

Mark bit his lip, beginning to sense where this was going. “What did you think I used?” 

“Outlook.” Donghyuck sheepishly mumbled out. 

Mark burst out in raucous laughter. He felt like he’d been plunged into a pool of emotional limbo; somewhere halfway between relief and frustration. Thoughts and suspicions that Donghyuck never really cared for him had plagued him every time his inbox was left empty, and for what? He’d been torturing himself, and Donghyuck likewise, assuming Mark was purposely ignoring his emails, purely because of a stupid mistake. 

“C’mon Hyuck, how old do you think I am?” The only person Mark knew that exclusively used Outlook was maybe his elementary school mathematics teacher. 

He was tempted to make another joke, but Donghyuck looked as if he was on the verge of tears, so he pulled him in for a hug instead. He carded his hands through Donghyuck’s soft hair, stroking the boy’s head the way his grandmother used to when he was upset. Mark could feel Donghyuck’s tiny fingers grip the sides of his jumper, pulling him ever closer. 

“I-I thought you’d forgotten me.” Donghyuck hiccuped. Even though Mark couldn’t see his face, he knew the boy was pouting, trying to steady his usually smooth voice amid the tears. 

Mark whispered his next words even though there was no one else around to hear them, hoping to convey even a small percentage of the adoration he felt for the boy. “How could I ever have forgotten _you_ , Lee Donghyuck?” 

Sighing, Mark rested his chin on Donghyuck’s shoulder, thinking of all the opportunities to hug Donghyuck the future now held. It filled his body with a warm feeling like the heat from the early morning sun slowly heating his room during spring. He was certain that no matter where life took him; he’d always drift back to Donghyuck. 

**Author's Note:**

> as i mentioned in the top notes, this is based on an artwork by @puppysuns on twit (once i work out how to hyperlink i'll add a link to the specific drawing) so if you managed to make it this far, please check out her work and give her the recognition she deserves!!! 
> 
> also this is my first post, so pls be nice, i have no idea what i'm doing and i purely pulled the ending out of my ass TT


End file.
